Eight is the Stooges' lucky number -- at least as far as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is concerned.

After seven previous appearances on the nomination ballot, the groundbreaking rock group that roared out of Ann Arbor in 1967 will be part of the Hall's class of 2010, joining ABBA, Jimmy Cliff, Genesis and the Hollies. The ceremony takes place March 15 at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City and will be broadcast live on Fuse TV.

Stooges frontman and co-founder Iggy Pop told RollingStone.com that he was "very surprised" by the news, saying that the previous rejections "started to feel like Charlie Brown and the football. I had about two hours of a strong emotional reaction after hearing the news. It felt like vindication. Then I kind of scratched my head and thought, 'Am I still cool? Or is that over now?' "

Pop -- who led the group in performing for Madonna's Rock Hall induction in 2008 -- added that the induction "would have meant a lot" to founding Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton, who died in January at the age of 60. "He waited longer for his success than I did," Pop said. "More than anyone in the group, he was a very stalwart Michigan boy. He was a regular guy and he enjoyed the extent to which some regular folks were getting to know him and his music.

"And I know his brother too, Scott. I think the last time we got ix-nayed they were telling me, 'Oh, we don't give a shit. We don't care.' But they do. And I do."

The Stooges released three albums between 1969-73 before breaking up. Pop brought the group back together for four songs on his 2003 album "Skull Ring," which led to a full-scale reunion and a new studio album, "The Weirdness," in 2007. The group is expected to perform at the ceremony with guitarist James Williamson, who was part of the "Raw Power" lineup of the band in the early '70s. That version of the Stooges is planning to tour in 2010.